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One of Danny Ainge’s final moves as the top decision-maker of the Boston Celtics was to sign Jabari Parker as a free agent for the final stretch of the 2020-21 campaign. And while Parker’s career had descended to the point that he was riding the pine in Sacto, there was a level of excitement about the signing initially.
After all, Parker was a former No. 2 overall pick who was still in his mid-20s.
He did enough during that first run for Brad Stevens and Ime Udoka to give him another shot in ’21-22, too. In the end, though, it didn’t work out for Parker in Beantown. After averaging 4.4 points and 2.2 rebounds over just 12 appearances with the club, he was waived in January.
Flash forward to now and Ainge looks to be giving Parker yet another opportunity to prove he still has something to offer at the NBA level.
Jabari Working Out for the Jazz
As relayed by KSL.com’s Ryan Miller, Parker and 19 other ballers will be attending a free-agent mini-camp with Ainge’s current team, the Utah Jazz. Per the report, the camp will take place on Monday and Tuesday, June 13-14.
Parker will be joined in Salt Lake City by Aamir Simms, Ade Murkey, Bruno Caboclo, Caleb Homesley, Denzel Valentine, DJ Funderburk, Frank Bartley, Grant Riller, Isaiah Pineiro, James Palmer, Jay Huff, Joel Ayayi, Justin Robinson, Langston Galloway, MaCio Teague, Reggie Perry, Sindarius Thornwell, Trae Bell-Haynes and Vitto Brown.
Whether or not the ex-Celtic and one-time Duke standout actually makes sense for a roster spot in Utah is difficult to discern. The Jazz are currently in a state of flux with head coach Quin Snyder having resigned last week and reports indicated that Ainge could explore trading one or both of their All-Stars in Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell.
In any case, major changes are expected from the former C’s chief after Gobert and Co. were ousted in Round 1 by the Dallas Mavericks.
The 27-year-old Parker has seen action in 310 career games with six teams, averaging 14.1 points and 5.5 rebounds with shooting splits of 49-33-74.
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Warriors Fans Unearthed Tatum’s Ancient Jabari Take Ahead of the Finals
Long before injuries derailed his pro career, Parker was arguably the best prep prospect in the nation at Chicago’s Simeon High School. Before landing with the Blue Devils, Michigan State, Florida and BYU were all chomping at the bit to make the 2012 Gatorade National POY the cornerstone of their program.
Among those in Parker’s cheering section was a 13-year-old Jayson Tatum who tweeted: “Jabari Parker is better the Andrew Wiggins.”
That tweet was resurfaced with fanfare by Warriors fans looking to give Wiggins some bulletin board material heading into the NBA Finals showdown between the two teams.
“@22wiggins i personally wouldn’t let him say that to me without winning a ring,” read one of the new Twitter responses to Tatum.
Added a Redditor: “Tatum f****d around, now he’s going to find out.”
Needless to say, Dub Nation was reaching with this one.
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